Environmental Conservation in Rwanda
Senior 2 · Geography and Environment
Environmental Conservation in Rwanda
Lesson 3 of 3
22 min
Since 2017, more than 120 rhinos have been flown into Akagera, and lions, gone from the park for years, number over 70 again. Plastic bags have been banned since 2008, and on the last Saturday of each month the country turns out for Umuganda. Rwanda is known worldwide for conservation. Yet it still faces hard problems. This lesson weighs the challenges against the measures, so you can judge what works.
| Measure | Rwandan examples |
|---|---|
| Laws and institutions | The Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA) enforces environmental law. Plastic carry bags were banned in 2008, and a 2019 law extended the ban to many single-use plastics. Impact assessments are required before big projects. |
| Protected areas | Four national parks (Volcanoes, Akagera, Nyungwe, Gishwati–Mukura) and protected wetlands. A plan announced in 2022 would expand Volcanoes National Park with a buffer zone to cut human–wildlife conflict. |
| Restoring wildlife | Lions returned to Akagera in 2015 (72 by 2025); eastern black rhinos in 2017 and 2019; white rhinos in 2021 and 2025. |
| Community work: Umuganda | On the last Saturday of each month, from 08:00 to 11:00, adults aged 18–65 do community work: planting trees, digging terraces and anti-erosion ditches, and cleaning drains and streets. |
| Afforestation and agroforestry | A national tree-planting season each year; trees grown among crops and along field edges. |
| Soil and water conservation | Radical and progressive terraces, grass strips, and wetland restoration such as Kigali's Nyandungu eco-park. |
| Cleaner energy | Improved cookstoves, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), biogas and solar power reduce the demand for wood. |
| Sharing benefits | Part of park tourism revenue funds schools, clinics and water points for neighbouring communities, so that they gain from protection. |
| Planning and education | The Green Growth and Climate Resilience Strategy (2011); environment clubs in schools; awareness campaigns. |
A sector has 8,000 adults who each take part in Umuganda for 3 hours every month. How many hours of community work does the sector give in a year?
Evaluate the ban on plastic bags as a conservation measure.
Tip
Memory hook: "LAPS-CRUE". Laws, Afforestation, Protected areas, Soil and water conservation, Cleaner energy, Restoring wildlife, Umuganda, Education. Name a Rwandan example for each.
Solution: animals destroy crops or livestock, so farmers lose income, and they may then oppose the park or kill the animals.
Solution: on the last Saturday of each month (08:00–11:00); tasks include planting trees and digging terraces (also cleaning drains).
Solution: communities receive schools, clinics and water points, so they see the park as a benefit and help protect it.
Solution: 18 + 5 + 30 + 70 = 123 rhinos.
Solution: laws are hard to enforce if poor families have no alternative fuel or land, so measures must also offer alternatives.
Summary
Sources and credits
The challenge and measure tables, the worked examples and the practice items are written by Ganzaa.
This lesson adapts CC BY-SA material and is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
